Harry Potter and the White Pheonix
by harrypotter4ever
Summary: summary- Harry's 6th year is filled with adventure and humor, as he learns of the legend of the white phoenix, meets new friends, and discovers more about the past than he could have ever imagined.
1. The Dismal Holiday

Chapter 1  
  
The dismal holiday  
  
(unless you can come up with a better title)  
  
If anything at all, life at number 4 privet drive was horribly boring. A small, skinny boy with tousled black hair, brilliant green eyes, and a peculiar lightning scar lay on his bed in the smallest room of the house. He was an odd boy, mostly because he was a wizard, a famous wizard, named Harry James Potter. Harry found himself willingly confining himself to his room, and for a change, not facing the objections of his aunt Petunia and Uncle Dursley. His cousin, Dudley, had ignored him completely, allowing Harry to lie alone in his room to think. Not that this did very much good, of course. His thoughts seldom comforted him. If he wasn't thinking about Voldemort and his death eaters, and the state of the wizarding world he was so restricted from, his thoughts strayed to Sirius. He missed him, terribly so. The one man who, to Harry, was both guardian and brother, as well as slightly a partner in crime, his godfather. He was dead now, and still, the day before his birthday, weeks after he had returned to the muggle world, Harry had trouble accepting te fact that Sirius had gone. Shock, probably. Every night since that fateful day at the ministry, Harry had practiced Occlumency, the art of blocking one's mind to others, and yet still found himself feeling the emotions of Voldemort, the most evil and feared wizard in over a century.  
  
  
  
This summer much followed the same routine as the last one. He would check the Daily Prophet, the wizarding newspaper, each morning, and listen to the muggle news each night, hoping for news of what might be happening in the wizarding world, but receiving little to none. Oh, every so often the Daily Prophet would post a story about how incredibly brave and noble he was, but apart from that, his isolation was almost maddening for the lack of information. It was around 8:34 in the morning by then. About twenty minutes ago, Aunt Petunia had served him some grapefruit through the tiny cat flap in his door, which he had eaten sparingly, for he hardly had an appetite. Hedwig, his snowy owl, hooted suddenly, flapping her graceful white wings as a small barn owl tapped the window. Harry scowled. The Daily Prophet wasn't supposed to deliver this late. A muggle could see. Hastily, he wrenched open the window, took the paper from one of it's claws, and dropped several bronze knuts into the leather bag tied to it's other. The bird hooted it's approval, seeing that Harry had accidentally slipped two more knuts than necessary into it's pouch, and flew off. Hedwig watched it enviously, as though wishing she were it. Harry smiled slightly, seeing her eagerness, and opened the door to her small metal bird cage.  
  
"Go on." he said. " Might as well have a bit of fun.  
  
Hedwig hooted gleefully, pecked Harry ever so slightly on his ear, and soared off into the early morning. Harry shut his window and opened the Daily Prophet.   
  
  
  
Muggle-Born Witch killed by the Avada Kedavra Curse  
  
Mrs. Tanya Sherrn, department for games and sports,  
  
third to head Ludo Bagman, was found dead in her house  
  
on the third of July this year. Such news has come late, as  
  
her 34 year old cousin, muggle, insisted that burial plannings  
  
and an investigation be conducted before anything so menial  
  
as the press was to find out.  
  
Harry stopped reading there, and flipped through the rest of the paper. There was an article on the Weird Sisters, an advertisement for Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, a column on how to keep kneazles out of your yard, and a few more articles about common, everyday news. Nothing besides the headline seemed of any importance to Harry. He sighed, and fell back onto his sheets with a thump. Two more days until his birthday, and then he might have something interesting happen. There was a knock at the door, but Harry didn't answer. Another knock, then whoever it was went away. Harry sighed again. A clap of thunder resounded through the otherwise quiet streets, and a couple of seconds later, rain was pouring down, watering the parched yards.  
  
After about ten minutes, Dudley burst into the room, looking horribly wet.  
  
  
  
"Go away." Harry said dully. Just because Dudley couldn't go beating up poor Mark Evans now, didn't mean he was going to give Harry any crap!  
  
"No!" Dudley replied.  
  
"Wow!" Harry said sarcastically. "You really surprised me with that one!"  
  
"Oh, shut-up Potter!"  
  
"Amazing! You've advanced from mono-syllables, to multi-syllables!"  
  
"Shut-it! I want to know what's been wrong with you lately!"  
  
"What-"  
  
"You've been spending all day in here, you never talk to anyone, and you've been talking in your sleep!"  
  
"I have n-"  
  
"You don't talk about that Cedric guy anymore. Now you keep saying 'he's going to come back! Please come back!' or you put on this weird laugh."  
  
"Get lost!" Harry cried, taking out his wand. Dudley had jumped up and ran out of the room before Harry could mutter any nonsense words under his breath.  
  
The next few days passed just as the first. Hedwig returned on the very morning of his birthday, with a small parcel tied to one leg, (probably from Hermione, as she didn't have an owl), a tiny hooting ball of feathers that could only be Ron's Pigwidgeon, and a rather important looking barn owl, carrying a package and several letters. Harry was pleased to see that his gift from Hermione had not been a book, as he had expected, but an amazingly beautiful cloth, about a foot in length and width, and rather than the typical embroidered scene, like a muggle tapestry would have been, it had a minute forest, surrounding a still lake. Deer, squirrels, and other wildlife, including mystical creatures, wandered in and out of it, and occasionally, it might rain. Harry suspected that it might also change with the seasons. Enclosed in a small envelope was a card and a letter. He read the letter first.  
  
  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
I hope your summer's been enjoyable. Of course, with the Dursleys, I doubt that's possible.  
  
It's simply awful, being restricted from the wizarding world, isn't it? Now I know how you feel.   
  
I've been vacationing with my parents. We went on a fantastic cruise, all the way to the  
  
Caribbean islands. Would you believe that one of them actually had a hidden wizarding  
  
community on them? That's where I bought this. I even managed to empty my wallet on a few  
  
others. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with them, but they were simply wonderful! I thought  
  
might cheer you up and make a good birthday gift. Also, there's a card inside that you might  
  
find interesting. I found it on the island as well. It's got a moving picture of a game they played  
  
on the island. It's sort of like quidditch, if you look at it from a certain point of view. Well, I'd  
  
better send this now, or I won't finish in time to make it to the post office.  
  
Hermione  
  
Harry examined the card, and saw two men racing on bewitched bamboo rods, trying to balance quaffle-like balls on a single hand, while two others obviously from the opposing team flew around them, trying to stop them from going through two huge hoops. The team with the balls succeeded in winning. Harry smiled and placed the card and the letter back in the envelope, and placed it and the tapestry on the side of his desk. The next parcel  
  
was Ron's, and the second Harry had untied the box from Pig's leg, the tiny owl was off again, too energetic to remain. Harry unwrapped his gift, and was quite pleased to see a full box of gifts from the entire Weasley family. From Mrs. Weasley, a box of homemade treacle fudge. From Mr. Weasley, a small pamphlet describing the progress of the professional Quidditch teams. The Tornadoes were still doing quite well. From Ginny, a card that sang Happy Birthday, with an entire choir of voices, much more relaxing than the shrilly-singing one she'd given him as a get-well card in his third year. From the twins, a box of Skiving Snackboxes, two cases of Canary Creams, and a set of their famous fireworks. And last but not least, from Ron, a beautifully carved box, filled with some strange glass balls, like marbles, only they seemed to be filled with something. There was a red one, which seemed to hold a dancing fire inside it, a purple one, which seemed to hold a lightning storm within it, a blue one, which seemed to be filled with water, a green one, which seemed to hold plants, a yellow one, which held a sickly smoke, a pale pink one, which looked like it had thousands of tiny pink balls bouncing around inside of it, and an orange one, which seemed to have a solid mass of chalk within it. Inside the box was also a letter.  
  
Dear Harry,  
  
Sorry I wrote this kind of sloppily. I'm having trouble concentrating.  
  
It's really weird not having Fred and George around with all their noise and stuff, but they're doing really well with their joke shop! They even lent me  
  
some galleons, even though they know I'll probably never pay them back.  
  
That's how I could get you these! They're mood balls! See, they can tell you  
  
which mood you're feeling most strongly, in case you get confused. They were  
  
really expensive, so I hope you appreciate it! As long as you own them, they  
  
won't show anybody else's emotions but yours! Plus, they won't break, so we'll  
  
never have to find out what's really in those yellow and orange ones! Ugh! See,  
  
the purple one is anger, the red is excitement, the blue is sadness, the green is  
  
jealousy, the orange is happiness, the pink is fear, and the yellow is nervousness.  
  
They glow to tell you which one you're feeling the most. Cool, huh?  
  
Oh! And dad told me to tell you the usual. Don't leave the house unless  
  
you have to, don't do anything rash, and mum wants you to stay safe, and away  
  
from dementors this summer. I think she was joking. Fred and George also wanted  
  
to send you some ton-tongue toffees, but mum wouldn't let them, and we all decided  
  
that the instant swamps were just a little dangerous. Well, see you at school.  
  
Ron.  
  
P.S. How did you do on your O.W.L.s?   
  
His O.W.L.s. Harry hadn't even thought about them! He glanced again at the marble balls. The pink and orange ones were glowing slightly. He then turned his attention to the important-looking owl. The second he removed it's burden, it glanced haughtily at Hedwig, took a gulp of water, and took off. Harry opened the package, and found a plate of Hagrid's infamous rock cakes, and a letter inside wishing him a happy birthday. One of the letters had his school supply lis, and the last one had his O.W.L scores. With a shaking palm, he opened it and pulled out the letter, and felt his jaw drop.  
  
Defense Against the Dark Arts Outstanding  
  
Potions Outstanding  
  
Transfiguration Excellent  
  
Charms Excellent  
  
Divination Average  
  
Care of Magical Creatures Excellent  
  
Astronomy Average  
  
Herbology Average  
  
For a few more seconds he just stared. He had completely aced his O.W.L.s, and made an Outstanding on potions! He'd made an Outstanding on his worst class! Gently, he set the piece of parchment down on his desk and leaned back in his chair. At first, relief spread through him, that he hadn't gotten Dismal or Troll on it. Then dread. He was going through a whole other year of potions! Well, at least Hermione would be with him.  
  
He sighed and gathered all his gifts into a small pile, then jumped as yet another bird came soaring through his window. It was a silky screech owl holding a thin, tube like parcel. Harry took it from the bird's leg, and it hopped off to join Hedwig. Opening the tube, he pulled out an edition og The Quibbler, from Luna Lovegood. Harry supposed she had sent it as a birthday present. Odd, though. Nobody but Hermione, Hagrid, Sirius, and the Weasleys had ever given him a gift before! Very odd, but then, Luna Lovegood was a very odd person. Harry grinned and opened it up to read the absolute nonsense it provided. He was only going to be spending one more week here at the Dursleys, then they would drop him off at the Leaky Cauldron so he could venture into Diagon Alley for the rest of the summer, then pick him up the day he was to be at King's Cross station and leave him at the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. At least this week might not be so bad. At least, with all these gifts, his O.W.L scores, and the promise of returning to the wizarding world, he hoped it wouldn't.  
  
ok, whaddaya think? r&r please! oh! and, if you have any suggestions, ideas, requests, etc. . . . . We need some sort of mischief to freak out the Dursleys at Kings Cross.-Talon 


	2. The Train Ride

Chapter 2  
  
The train ride   
  
The stay at the Leaky Cauldron was actually more pleasant than Harry had expected. It turned out that, to avoid having to bother staying much longer, Aunt Petunia had actually gone early and made a reservation for him. Harry was also glad to see that the witch assigned to keep an eye on him was an old acquaintance and friend. Of all the wizards to be assigned to keep watch over him, he had been pleased to see Nymphadora Tonks gotten he job. But, his stay was not quite as comfortable as it had at first seemed. It was sometimes hard to venture back out into Diagon Alley to purchase his school things at all. People would often come up to him, exclaim it was Harry Potter, then ask for a personal account of the story. In fact, by the time the Dursleys returned several weeks later to take him to King's Cross station, he never wanted to have to even think about it again! Much less tell the story to various strangers.  
  
"Well, here we are." said Uncle Vernon sourly. "Now, get on that train with your freaky little friends."  
  
Tonks, who had accompanied him, seemed quite appalled by Uncle Vernon's attitude towards Harry.  
  
"Mr. Dursley. You're not going to see him for another year! Why not say goodbye or be nice?"  
  
Uncle Vernon sniffed.  
  
"Go! Both of you!"  
  
And with that he, Aunt Petunia, and Dudley turned around and stalked. Harry noticed that TOnks had pulled her wand and flicked it slightly. Uncle Vernon fell to the floor in a great heap. Dudley tripped and fell on top of him, and Aunt Petunia stood, blushing at the scene.  
  
"Wotchit, Harry." Tonks said, clearly pleased with herself. "Best get on the train!"  
  
Harry grinned, grabbed his trolley and strode briskly toward the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. Just when it seemed that he would crash, he walked right through, and emerged before a brick wall on the other side. Nearby, a large sign read 'Platform 9 3/4'. All around him, students were bustling to and fro. A group of third years stood grinning not too far away from him, talking in hushed voices. Harry suspected that, as the lead trouble-makers Fred and George Weasley had graduated recently, all sorts of students had become rather keen on claiming the title of troublemaker, and these boys had just pulled a stunt to help gain that title.  
  
"Well, go on!" Tonks said suddenly, making Harry jump. "You don't want to miss the train, now do you?" Harry strolled toward the train, waving goodbye to Tonks. After selecting a compartment near the very back, he simply sat and waited. About ten minutes later, Neville Longbottom arrived, seating himself next to Harry. The two boys didn't speak, old memories still lingering. The department of mysteries, the prophecy. Harry had yet to tell anybody that, if Voldemort hadn't gone after Harry, then he would have gone for Neville. He had also failed to mention to another living person that his destiny was to either kill lord Voldemort and save the wizarding world, or be killed and doom them all. The train was slowly starting to move, thick puffs of steam billowing from the top. Ron and Hermione burst into the cabin and stored their trunks up with the others. Then, spurting their apologies, they dashed off in the direction of the prefects cabin. Pigwidgeon hooted disheveled, and Hermione's ginger cat, Crookshanks, attempted to follow his mistress, but Harry grabbed him by the scruff of the neck.  
  
As the train moved steadily in the direction of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After a time, Harry and Neville found themselves deep in conversation about their summers. Or, more Neville was talking and Harry was avoiding having to mention his own stay at the Dursleys. About an hour into the trip, Harry purchased some snacks from the woman pushing the trolley, and a half an hour after that, Hermione and Ron came into the carriage. Crookshanks leapt nimbly into Hermione's lap, purring loudly.  
  
"Oh man, I'm starving!" Ron insisted, grabbing a cauldron cake and stuffing it into his mouth. "Ah! Musch Be'er!"  
  
"Oh, chew your food, Ron!" Hermione insisted. Ron rolled his eyes. Sensing an argument, Harry interrupted.  
  
"SO. Who do you think our new defense against the dark arts teacher is gonna be?"  
  
"Dunno." Ron replied. "It's not like they're going to last for very long. Must I repeat it? One dead, one's memory reversed, one sacked, one locked in a trunk for a year, and the one taking his place got his soul sicked out, and one had to tolerate Fred and George, Peeves, and the entire school, then got attacked by centaurs. I'm pretty sure this one's not going to fare much better!"  
  
"I hope Snape doesn't get the job!" Neville put in, suppressing a shiver. They all knew that poor Neville was terrified of Snape, and they all recalled how terrible it had been to have as a teacher for two classes in their third year.  
  
"I'm sure he won't!" Hermione said. "He can't handle two subjects!"  
  
"Umbridge got Defense Against the Dark Arts, and she was temporary headmistress, remember?"  
  
"Yes, well." said Hermione. "See how well she turned out?"  
  
A sudden thumping noise met their ears. Outside their compartment, someone was struggling to get a large trunk through the narrow aisles.  
  
"Damn aisles! Why are they so small? Who built these things anyway? As if it isn't even hard enough to find a place to sit anyway!" Their door slid open and a young woman with a lightly freckled tanned face, shoulder-blade length auburn locks and icy sky blue eyes stared down at them. She said something very quickly, with an obvious accent, and they didn't understand a word.  
  
"Huh?" Ron said, staring. The girl glared at him, then repeated herself very slowly.  
  
"Is. This. Compartment. Full?"  
  
"No." Hermione said. "Come on in."  
  
The girl heaved a large trunk inside and stored it up with the rest of their trunks. Harry noticed that she had a longbow strapped to it, almost as big as she was. But before she could say anything, she had seated herself beside Ron, right next to the window.  
  
"Hi, I'm Hermione Granger." Hermione said pleasantly.  
  
Hermione shook the girl's hand.  
  
"Ron Weasley."  
  
"Neville Longbottom."  
  
"Harry Potter."  
  
"It's nice to meet you." she said pleasantly. Ron once again stared at her.  
  
"What?" she asked, shifting uneasily away from him.  
  
"Aren't you going to stare at him, or say something?"  
  
"At Harry or Neville?"  
  
"Harry! Do you realize that you're the first person I've met who hasn't stared at him?"  
  
"Why would I stare at him? I mean, if you say I should be attracted to a complete stranger-"  
  
"He defeated You-Know-Who!"  
  
"No, I don't know who."  
  
"He tried to kill me when I was a baby." Harry explained. "But the curse rebounded and almost killed him. I've had a couple of other encounters with him. His real name's Voldemort." Everybody flinched slightly, except for the girl and Harry.  
  
"You're not from around here, are you?" Neville said.  
  
"Gee, how could you tell?" she said sarcastically.  
  
"Well, you sound like one of those cowboys."  
  
The girl rolled her eyes.  
  
"It's southern! I'm from Texas, America."  
  
"Then what are you doing here?" Hermione asked.  
  
"None of those schools would accept me."  
  
"Excuse me for asking." Hermione went on. "But aren't you a bit old to be starting school like this." the girl shrugged.  
  
"I'm sorry." Harry said. "But we didn't get your name."  
  
"I'm Holly." she said. "Holly Brown. Pretty plain name."  
  
"Why do you have a bow?" Neville asked. So, Harry hadn't been the only one to notice.  
  
"It's sort of a trinket. I've had it for years, and I couldn't bear to leave it behind."  
  
For the next few hours, the five students talked. They told Holly all about Hogwarts, and in turn, she told them all about Texas. Harry noticed that along with faded blue jeans and yellow shirt, ash also wore a large trench coat-like coat, brown scarves, and brown gloves.  
  
"It's really cold in England!" she insisted. "I'd hate to find out how cold it gets in the winter! Of course, it would be nice to see snow!"  
  
Hermione checked her watch and announced that they'd best change. Holly and Hermione left for the another compartment, and together, the boys slipped out of their muggle clothing and into their Hogwarts robes. Harry saw, along with Ron's trunk, there were two wooden crates right next to Pig's cage.  
  
"What are those?"  
  
Ron flushed.  
  
"Fred and George figured that, since I'm still at Hogwarts, I could be their new salesperson! Besides, I needed to pay off that debt anyway. I hope you like those balls, Harry! I'm gonna be working until Christmas to pay them off."  
  
Once they were all changed, Hermione returned.  
  
"Holly won't be for a while. She didn't want to change in the same room as me. Hermione sat down, the leapt up and brushed some white feathers off the seat.  
  
"Harry, I think Hedwig is malting."  
  
"No. She's been in here cage this whole time."  
  
Their conversation was cut short when Holly returned. Rather than one of the houses stamped over her heart, she had the Hogwarts crest. It would be odd to see a sixth year in the sorting.  
  
The train slowed to a halt as they reached the school.  
  
Cool, huh? listen, we need ideas for a DADA teacher!-Talon 


	3. The Feast

BTW, Harry got a below average on his History of Magic exams. And sorry it took so long. I was grounded for THREE weeks, and now I have the flu!- Talon  
  
It IS all your fault!-Raven.  
  
Chapter 3 The Feast  
  
The train stopped at Hogwarts with an immense screech, and they all filed untidily out, several minutes later. Together, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and even Holly squeezed into one of the thestrel drawn carriages. As they passed the large, reptilian horse-like beasts, Holly shivered slightly. Harry assumed she could see them as well. All along the bumpy ride up to the castle, Holly was uncharacteristically silent, despite the rather animated conversation the other four were sharing. In fact, judging by the way she looked out the window with that faint smile on her face, as though she were seeing something special and dear the others somehow couldn't detect, he decided that she would much rather exclude herself in that way than join in with them.  
IN almost no time at all, the carriages had stopped and they had all piled out, stepping through the large, regal entrance doors to join the buzzing crowd of second through seventh year students. Amidst the waves of students, Harry spotted Luna Lovegood.  
"Oy, Luna!" he called. Luna gave him her dreamy sort of misty smile and walked over to join them. Harry noticed that she was wearing her butterbeer bottle cap necklace again.  
"Hello Harry." she said distantly. "Ron, Hermione, Neville. Oh, hello. I don't know you."  
"Holly Brown. I'm American, Texan to be exact."  
"I could tell."  
A few feet away, Harry could hear some fifth year girls snickering.  
"Look at that Ravenclaw! She's ridiculous."  
"That's Loony Lovegood."  
"Just look at her necklace!" Holly scowled and said nonchalantly in a quite loud voice:  
"Why Luna, I love your necklace! Things like that are all the rage in America! Why, some people even wear bottle cap belts and safety pins on their shirts, all for fashion! It's totally the bomb!"  
The Hufflpuffs decidedly gawked, then walked off. Holly grinned.  
"You really like my necklace, then?" Luna asked.  
"Yeah, it's really cool!"  
"That girl's either painfully polite, or off her rocker!" Ron muttered in Harry's ear. Harry nodded as professor McGonagall strode into the hall. Odd. She was supposed to be up by the stairs waiting the first years.  
"Professor, I-I didn't know where to go." Holly stammered.  
"That's quite all right, Ms. Brown. I believe we've already discussed the special circumstances?"  
"Yes'm."  
"Then you already know which house you'll be entering. Now, if you'll excuse me." Professor McGonagall gave them all a curt nod and walked off briskly. Before Harry could say anything, the crowd of older students had pushed and shoved him off in the direction of the great hall. It was not until the crowd had dispersed that Harry was reunited with Ron, Neville, and Hermione.  
"Where do you think-" Ron began, but Hermione interrupted him.  
"Ravenclaw." she said simply, pointing off in the direction of the Ravenclaw table. Holly was seated between Cho and Luna, and by the looks of it, she didn't seem to be enjoying herself too terribly much. Cho was talking animatedly to her, and in reply, she had slumped back in her seat, looking painfully bored and aggravated. Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table just as the doors were flung open and Professor McGonagall walked in, holding a stool and ancient-looking hat, trailed closely by a small myriad of first-years. Once the Sorting Hat had been placed on the stool, a tear in the seam split open and it had begun to sing. Immediately, all voices in the Great Hall were hushed, everyone intent on the song.  
  
Each year you hear another song Of welcome and admission To send you into your own house Where you begin your mission Although I split you up With a deadly guilt  
  
The all of you are still a one Though you stand at a sword's hilt. The Ravenclaws alike their lady Who came from fairest glen With clever, wit, and able minds There's not a fix they could not mend  
  
The Hufflepuffs with loyal hearts Shan't leave a friend behind Not at all unlike, from valley broad Came sweet Hufflpuff so kind  
  
And not to mention Gryffindors Who're as courageous as no other Their master from the wild moor Without a matching brother And yet, there is still Slytherins Who take care of themselves. Old Salazar's ambition could Never have been deeper delved  
  
To whom of these must you belong To keep you from a union And will you find that place correct To match your intuition  
  
For years to pass and years to come I'll tell this tale to you For never will another be So honest and so true And here I am, awaiting you  
  
Just slip me on your head I'll tell you where you ought to be  
  
The Hufflepuffs with loyal hearts shan't leave a friend behind Not at all unlike, from valley broad Came sweet Hufflepuff so kind  
  
And not to mention Gryffindors who're as courageous as no other their master from the wild moor without a matching brother  
  
And yet, there is still Slytherins Who take care of themselves. Old Salazar's ambition could never have been deeper delved  
  
To whom of these must you belong to keep you from a union And will you find that place correct to match your intuition For years to pass and years to come I'll tell this tale to you For never will another be so honest and so true And here I am, awaiting you Just slip me on your head I'll tell you where you ought to be  
  
And yet, there is still Slytherins Who take care of themselves. Old Salazar's ambition could never have been deeper delved To whom of these must you belong To keep you from a union And will you find that place correct To match your intuition For years to pass and years to come I'll tell this tale to you For never will another be So honest and so true And here I am, awaiting you Just slip me on your head I'll tell you where you ought to be  
  
The Great Hall erupted in applause as the Sorting hat gave a curt sort of bow and Professor McGonagall read "Albeen, Caroline" from her great list of first years.  
"Look at the new defense against the dark arts teacher!" Hermione hissed. Harry glanced at the table. Seated next to Professor Sinistra and talking very avidly was a very young woman. Perhaps the youngest and most beautiful defense against the dark arts teacher they had ever been given. She had long, pale moonlike hair, and the most beautiful blue eyes Harry had ever-  
"Fleur!" Ron gasped. "That's Fleur Delacour  
  
!" Hermione sniffed indignantly, and scoffed. "I thought our food and decorative touches were too bland and boring for someone who'd gone to Beauxbatons!"  
Ron shushed her, still staring avidly at the staff table.  
"Bill mentioned her getting a new job." the Weasley murmured, eyes transfixed on the part-veela woman he had met two years or so ago. "I was too busy with Pig, though. I think he was choking on a treat."  
"Isn't she a bit young?" Harry asked. Hermione shook her head.  
"She is of age, and she has graduated form Beauxbatons. And we all know how hard it is for Dumbledore to get a person for the job. I expect she was the only one who tried for it."  
Ron pulled on a face contorted with sheer disgust.  
"I can't believe I'm gonna have a teacher who's dating Bill!"  
"You asked her out too." Harry reminded him. Ron groaned and buried his face in his hands.  
"I'm sure she'll think very highly of you, Harry." Neville said simply. "You did save her sister. Harry sighed, staring down at his golden plate, as though willing it to fill with food. He distinctly heard Professor McGonagall call "Sickems, Jarod." and a rather tall, curly haired boy sat down on the stool. The hat hadbarely touched his head before crying out "Hufflepuff!" Rather than continue their conversation, they all watched quietly as one by one, the first years ambled up to be sorted. When finally, Yadernam, Christopher was sent to Slytherin, Dumbledore stood, beaming at them all.  
"Welcome." he said pleasantly. "Welcome to yet another year. I feel it is my personal duty as headmaster to this school to remind you of several important aspects of this school. However, I am aware that it has been a long train ride for all of you and you would much rather eat our delicious feast than hear an old man's ramblings. So, I will limit my pre-feast speech to two fine words. Tuck in." And then he sat down again. In a second's notice, the empty plates and pitchers filled with pumpkin juice and a steaming medly of warm, hot foods. Needless to say, the entire hall dug in, the noise level steadily increasing as each person in turn began their own conversations . Harry was satisfied to watch Ron's obvious frustration at deciding whether to have the turkey or the ham.  
"It's quiet, isn't it?" Harry jumped slightly, hearing Ginny's voice.  
"Why aren't you sitting with all the other fifth years?" he asked. Ginny shrugged.  
"They were all peppering me with questions about the Department of Mysteries. I couldn't take it." she paused for a moment, then. "It really is quiet without Fred and George."  
"Trust me." Harry laughed. "We're all going to miss them, but there'll be some new pranksters soon." Ginny shook her head and muttered.  
"It won't be the same."  
"Come off it." Ron said, his mouth stuffed with turkey. "They still have their products. Personally, they've given me half a crate of free stuff, just because I sell for them!"  
"Well, I think it's great that they won't be testing on unsuspecting first years anymore!" Hermione said matter-of-factly.  
"It's not like they got hurt!" Ron muttered.  
"We're prefects, Ron!"  
Harry groaned slightly, sensing another argument, and turned his attention to the Ravenclaw table. Cho was now talking very quickly and excitedly to Holly, who looked as though she'd rather gag than continue listening. After a few minutes, she turned haughtily and said something very rude, because Cho looked suddenly as though she had been slapped. Holly repeated herself, and Cho huffily walked off to the other side of the table. Holly now looked rather pleased with herself.  
When the final remains of cobbler and pudding disappeared (for the feast was always replaced with desserts) and the final students leaned back in their chairs with satisfactory smiles on their faces, Dumbledore stood once more.  
"Well." he said. "I hope we have all enjoyed our magnificent feast. But now, I'm afraid, is the time for announcements. Mr. Filch has once again asked me to remind you that there is a list on his office door naming each and every item that is forbidden for use in the halls. I would recite it for you, except that as of this year, the list has reached a total of two hundred eighty-eight, and I'm afraid is much too long to recite out of memory.  
"Also, I feel I must remind you that the forbidden forest is completely out of bounds to all students. The centaurs, who have lost all desire in peaceful relations with us, would serve as a reminder to all of you."  
Harry and Hermione shifted uneasily in their chairs, and Harry noticed that their second Divination teacher, a centaur named Firenze, looked rather nervous.  
"May I introduce our new student, Miss Holly Brown, who comes to us all the way from America."  
Holly looked baffled at Dumbledore's mention of her presence, and blushed slightly, so that her skin was soon the same color as her auburn locks.  
"And our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Miss Fleur Delacour, from France"  
A vivacious applause erupted from many of the boys in the hall, but several girls, like Hermione, just sniffed indignantly.  
"Tryouts for the House quidditch teams will be posted on your school notice boards. Now, I'm sure you're all exhausted from your long train ride, so let me just say, I hope this year will be much, much more pleasant than the last. Goodnight all."  
  
The Hall soon erupted with noise as tired students got up and began conversations, while agitated prefects struggled to get their attention.  
"Oi! Hey, you first years!" Ron bellowed. "This way! Oi! Get over here you lot of midgets!"  
"Ron!" Hermione scolded. Harry made his way up to Gryffindor tower where he might escape the noise. He sat heavily next to the portrait of the Fat Lady, awaiting anybody who might have the password. he didn't have to wait long. About a half an hour later, Neville Longbottom had made his way up the stairs along with Dean Thomas, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, and Seamus Finnigan. Unsurprisingly, Harry and the others had to help Neville out of the trick stair. By then, it was a wonder Neville still got stuck in it, as it was elementary to so many others to skip it and go on to the next stair.  
"Thanks." he said genuinely as they lifted him out. "Listen, Hermione told me the new password. It's treacle fudge."  
Immediately, they portrait of the fat lady swung open and they ambled in. Yawning, they each made their way towards their own dormitories, changed into their pajamas, and curled up under their covers. a few seconds later, there was a great ruckus in the common room as Ron and Hermione led curious first years in. A few seconds later, Ron had wandered in and curled up on his own bed.  
The next thing Harry knew, he was playing quidditch, trying to catch a chocolate frog rather than a snitch, while Holly, Luna, and Cho each played flutes on the field, wearing huge stuffed ravens on their heads. Hermione was sitting in the stands, chatting animatedly with Fleur about something, and Ron zoomed past him, crying-  
"Wotchit Harry!" rather like Tonks.  
  
Hmmmmm. So how about radom quirks.- Raven  
  
Does anyone like that we set the story up like JKR? -Talon  
  
READ REVIEW AND READ SOME MORE!!!! -Raven  
  
Yeah.. what she said... -Talon 


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